Zinc-65 in Foods and People

Abstract

Disposal of trace amounts of Zn(65) is made in the Columbia River via Hanford reactor effluent water. The subsequent utilization of river water for irrigation permits the concentration of this radioisotope in farm produce and its eventual deposition in man. The Zn(65) in irrigation water, in farm produce, and in individuals utilizing these materials has been measured.

Low Level Gamma-Ray Scintillation Spectrometry: Experimental Requirements and Biomedical Applications

“…In the case of elements of long biological half-life, recourse is made to experimental setups with phantoms (24,90,99,104) and to the adoption of techniques designed to reproduce as closely as possible therein the absorption and scattering conditions obtained in vivo. In these instances, however, the human body, too complex to be perfectly imitated, is replaced by containers filled with liquid solutions; hence, even with the most faithfully shaped mannequins the tacit assumption is made that the radioelement is uniformly distributed throughout the body.…”

“…Moreover, both in our laboratory and elsewhere, there has been extensive use of these instruments in the determination of contamination in man, (110) be it due to exposure to food contaminated by fallout debris of nuclear explosions (3,5,8,9,26), to radionuclides discharged in rivers (90), or to industrial dusts (24). Of restricted scope, but of definite scientific interest, have been the whole-body measurements of Na 24 in man which was produced by the activation of Na 23 following accidental exposure to neutrons (18,25,89).…”

Zinc-65 in Marine Organisms along the Oregon and Washington Coasts

“…It is also found in agricultural products which are irrigated with river water taken from the Columbia at a point approximately 45 miles down river from the reactors (8,9).…”

Removal of 65Zn from Mouse Body by Isotopic Dilution and by DTPA Chelation

“…Radioactive zinc, 65 Zn, is generated by nuclear explosions, and the atmospheric nuclear tests performed in the 1950s led to environmental contamination with this isotope [5,10,13]. 65 Zn is also generated by the neutron-activation reaction of stable zinc ( 64 Zn) in nuclear reactors, and is found in the primary coolant of atomic power plants [4].…”